spratt89

Michael Sheen has confessed that he secretly tailed Sir David Frost as preparation for his role in the forthcoming Frost/Nixon.

Sheen, who portrays Frost in the movie adaptation of the hit play, revealed that he was determined to nail the veteran journalist's mannerisms.

"I just followed him. That sounds a bit creepy, doesn't it? I took photographs of the back of his head. I wanted to watch how he walked and then I took a picture to get his stance. It is a bit weird," he told WENN.

Frost/Nixon, which is directed by Ron Howard, details the dramatic post-Watergate television interviews between Frost and former US President Richard Nixon (Frank Langella) in 1977.

Earlier this week Frost branded aspects of the film as "fiction", claiming that the screenwriter adapted actual events to make a more audience-friendly movie.

spratt89

Warner Bros has asked the judge in the Watchmen copyright case to bring forward his decision regarding a potential release date delay.

Judge Gary Allen Feess recently ruled that 20th Century Fox still owns copyright interest in the movie, which is based on Alan Moore and Dave Gibbons's comic book, and has the right to distribute the first feature film based on the work. He set a January 20 hearing date to determine whether or not to delay the movie while all rights issues are settled.

However, Warner Bros has urged Feess to bring forward the court date, claiming that "time is critical" because they do not want to invest further millions in a film that they may be unable to release.

Arguing against an injunction to postpone the film's release, Warners said that Fox "abandoned" the movie in 1994 and that they have spent more than $150 million to make and market the film, using a "carefully choreographed" plan to debut it on March 6 in the US. They added that a release delay would damage their finances and those of third party exhibitors.

Feess recommended that both studios settle the dispute, but neither party could agree on a compensation deal.

spratt89

Colin Farrell is in final negotiations to join Peter Weir's forthcoming film The Way Back, reports Variety.

The 32-year old actor has been lined up to star alongside Ed Harris, 21's Jim Sturgess and Atonement actress Saoirse Ronan.

Based on the memoirs of Slavomir Rawicz, the story follows a group of soldiers who plot their escape from a Siberian gulag in 1942 following the German-Soviet invasion of Poland.

Farrell will reportedly play a Russian, Harris an American and Sturgess a Polish inmate. 14-year-old Ronan will play a young Russian on the run who encounters the fugitives.

The film, scripted by Master And Commander director Weir, is scheduled to begin filming in Bulgaria in March.

spratt89

Julianne Moore, Liam Neeson and Amanda Seyfried will lead the cast of thriller Chloe, reports Variety.

The story concerns a doctor (Moore) who believes that her husband (Neeson) is cheating on her. She hires an escort (Seyfried) to test her other half, only for the move to backfire and put her family's lives in danger.

Atom Egoyan will direct the movie, with father and son duo Ivan (Ghostbusters) and Jason Reitman (Juno) among the producers.

Chloe is a remake of the 2003 French film Nathalie that starred Gerard Depardieu and Emmanuelle Beart.

spratt89

Anne Hathaway appears to have been prematurely awarded a Golden Globe after the organisation's website accidentally placed a winner's star next to her name.

The actress has been nominated in the Best Actress, Drama category for her role in Rachel Getting Married, alongside actresses including Angelina Jolie and Kate Winslet.

However, a star indicating that Hathaway had won appeared on the award show's official website on Thursday, according to Access Hollywood.

A representative for the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, which decides the winners, refused to comment but the star was removed later that evening.

The 66th annual Golden Globes will be broadcast live this Sunday from the Beverly Hilton in Los Angeles.

spratt89

The Dark Knight producer Chuck Roven has admitted that plans for the film's proposed sequel are so secretive that even he has been kept in the dark.

Following the release of the blockbuster last summer, speculation has been mounting about a possible follow-up. However, Roven revealed that he is unaware that any concrete decisions have been taken yet.

"I know that Chris [Nolan] and [writer] David Goyer are talking and thinking. We're hoping, of course, that they find and rest on something that they'll find is worthy to do, but we don't know anything more than you do right now," he told MTV.

"All I can say - because I really don't know more than you do - is that I see no reason why, tonally, Chris would do anything different than he's done in the first two films."

spratt89

Jamie Bell has revealed that Daniel Craig saved him from getting hypothermia.

The actor admitted that without Craig's "Hollywood power" he could have fallen seriously ill.

The pair were shooting outdoor scenes in Lithuania for their new movie Defiance when the Billy Elliot actor grew colder and colder.

"The conditions were ripe for a bout of, 'I'm not f**king doing this!' but the closest we got was Daniel standing up for me one day in the rain at the end of October, it was absolutely freezing," Contactmusic quotes him as saying.

"My body started to lose control, going into hypothermic shock, I think. He said, 'We have to stop, he's starting to freak out and he's going to die'. He used his Hollywood power for good."

Bell added that Craig's on-screen 'manly' demeanour similar to his real-life personality.

"It's daft, because you do have to be butch in the presence of Bond, but Daniel has a really good heart and said, 'You need to take a second and then come back'. He's very much the leader that he portrays in this film."

Craig and Bell's new movie Defiance is in UK cinemas now.

spratt89

Mark Waters is in talks to direct the credit crunch-inspired comedy Minimum Wage, according to The Hollywood Reporter.

The project follows the story of a corrupt corporate executive who is sentenced to live a year on the minimum wage in a town that his company bankrupted.

Waters' credits include Mean Girls, The Spiderwick Chronicles and Freaky Friday.

Tegan West and Scott Atkinson penned the script.

spratt89

Sacha Baron Cohen has offended viewers of his new movie by featuring a black character called Jesus who wears a loincloth and crown of thorns.

The actor, who rose to fame as Ali G, upset 'more religious' viewers at a test screening of his new feature film Bruno: Delicious Journeys Through America For The Purpose Of Making Heterosexual Males Visibly Uncomfortable In The Presence Of A Gay Foreigner In A Mesh T-Shirt.

"Sacha has really gone for the shock tactics this time," a source told The Sun.

"The characters were created deliberately to wind certain sections of society up and Jesus is one of them.

"It won’t be the first time Sacha has landed himself in hot water. The water might be a little hotter this time round though. Religion isn’t always the best place to poke fun."

The movie also mocks Madonna's adoption of Malawian David Bacnda in a plot that sees gay Austrian fashion correspondent Bruno and his boyfriend deciding to adopt an African baby, also named David.

Bruno is scheduled for UK release on May 19.

spratt89

Sam Raimi has revealed that he wants vampire Morbius to be the Spider-Man 4 villain.

The filmmaker, who will return for fourth and fifth Spider-Man instalments along with Tobey Maguire, spoke about his choice of antagonist in the latest issue of Empire.

"I like it in the Marvel comics when Spider-Man fights Morbius," the director said. "He's really cool. A vampire! I like that combination of superhero plus supernatural."

The character, created by Roy Thomas and Gil Kane, first appeared in an issue of The Amazing Spider-Man in 1971. He is a scientist who transforms himself into a supervillain while attempting to cure himself of a blood disease using vampire bats.

spratt89

Nicole Kidman reportedly "squirmed" in her seat when she attended the world premiere of Australia.

The 41-year-old actress told a Sydney radio station that she was too nervous to watch her performance in the Baz Luhrmann epic.

"I can't look at this movie and be proud of what I've done," she told 2dayFM. "I sat there and looked at [husband] Keith [Urban] and went 'Am I any good in this movie?'

"I don't usually see my films, but because of Baz I had to see it. I saw Moulin Rouge. I've really only seen that and this in my whole career. It gets worse as I get older."

Kidman also revealed that she was so unnerved by seeing Australia that she fled the country after the premiere.

"We ran because I didn't want to read anything. I didn't want to know. I saw my sister and my family and we saw Keith's family and then we were straight on a plane."

spratt89

Toby Kebbell has admitted that he is disappointed to see his RocknRolla character compared to Pete Doherty.

The gangster movie's director Guy Ritchie has claimed that his rock star creation Johnny Quid is based on the troubled Babyshambles frontman.

However, Kebbell is keen to distance himself from those comparisons, telling Digital Spy: "No, I kind of got disappointed that that got mixed up into it because my whole aim was to really make him as disgusting as possible.

"I'm sure people out there will go, 'yeah, well [Doherty] is disgusting'. You can appreciate that from photographs when you see how bad he looks. But when you watch a film it's slightly different. In the film, all you can see is my abdominals. I was thin, beyond thin."

Kebbell, who has also starred in Dead Man's Shoes and Control, added of his character: "He's a crack addict and I wanted that to seem like it's disgusting that it's alright to waste time in drugs. He beats up a bouncer with a pencil, how foul is that? [The bouncer] slaps you and tells you you're not coming in so he stabs you to death with a pencil. That's a bit over the top isn't it?!

"To have Pete Doherty chucked into the mix with that makes it like I was trying to be like one of the cool, hip rockers of the moment and I wasn't at all. I was trying to say, isn't it disgusting that it's alright and you're capable, purely through talent, to waste your life?"

Kebbell was yesterday nominated for the 2009 Orange Rising Star BAFTA alongside Michael Cera, Noel Clarke, Michael Fassbender and Rebecca Hall.

spratt89

Prince Of Persia star Toby Kebbell has claimed that filming the video game adaptation was akin to an "epic journey".

Kebbell, one of the nominees for this year's Orange Rising Star BAFTA, described the experience of working on the Jake Gyllenhaal blockbuster as "phenomenal".

He said: "I never like to say phenomenal when you're wearing the same beard for nine months and you have to brush it out for nine hours. It's like pubes, always like that!

"[It was] 54 degrees centigrade on the edge of the Sahara in 18 kilos of armour on horseback. But they're like epic journeys in themselves. I'm blessed, I've got nothing to complain about."

The 26-year-old also discussed his role in Stephen Frears's period drama Cheri: "I have a minuscule part in that, but I'm rubbing Michelle Pfeiffer down and punching Rupert Friend in the face so it's alright!"

spratt89

Toby Kebbell has revealed that he won a part in Woody Allen's Match Point without having to audition.

The British actor, who appeared as a police officer in the 2005 movie, disclosed to Digital Spy that he wasn't made to audition by Allen because the legendary director was impressed by his performance in the violent drama Dead Man's Shoes.

"Woody Allen, [Match Point] was the second part I did after Dead Man Shoes," Kebbell commented. "He did see Dead Man's Shoes and I didn't even have to audition. It's a small mouse fart part, he gave me that just from seeing it."

Kebbell added that he is often given the freedom to utilise his improvisational skills by the directors he's worked with, who also include Oliver Stone, Guy Ritchie and Shane Meadows.

"When it came to filming [Match Point], Woody Allen said, 'I don't like the script, can you come up with something?'" he commented. "There's a line in Control where they say, 'how did you convince Tony?' and I said, 'I tied a laggy band around his c**k and balls.' That was just because we had nothing to say. I've been lucky, I've had some very well-written scripts as well."

Kebbell, along with Noel Clarke, Rebecca Hall, Michael Cera and Michael Fessbander, has been nominated for this year's Orange Rising Star BAFTA. The winner will be decided by a public vote and announced at the BAFTAs on February 8.

spratt89

Toby Kebbell has revealed that he is hoping to work with director Shane Meadows again on bare-knuckle boxing biopic King Of The Gypsies.

The 26-year-old, nominated for an Orange Rising Star BAFTA this week, made his acting debut on Meadows's vigilante drama Dead Man's Shoes. He has since gone on to star in Control and RocknRolla, while Meadows recently directed the critically-lauded This Is England and Somers Town.

Speaking to Digital Spy, Kebbell admitted that he is hoping to work again with Meadows and his Dead Man's co-star Paddy Considine on a film about late boxer Bartley Gorman.

He said: "I'd love that. I hope he does a film called King Of The Gypsies. I think it's tied up in some kind of legal problem. That's the one I hope he does, I would love to play Bartley Gorman as a younger man.

"You can see the documentary on YouTube, it's about a bare-knuckle boxing champion. He's a phenomenal character, he had the head the size of a barrel, an animal of a man. Hopefully I'll make that film and Paddy will play him older and I'll play him younger or I'll play one of his brothers, who were also fascinating bare-knuckle fighters.

"I just hope I work with him again, but I say to people you're blessed to work with him once. He is one of the greats of our generation."

shinny

spratt89

Sienna Miller has quit Ridley Scott's Robin Hood movie Nottingham.

The actress reportedly walked out on the production, in which she was to play Maid Marian, amid speculation that she did not get on with co-star Russell Crowe.

A source told the New York Post that Miller was unhappy with storyline changes made for Crowe. "Originally the movie was about a love triangle between Maid Marian, Robin Hood and the Sheriff of Nottingham. It is now all about Russell's Robin Hood," said the mole.

"Literally, 40 pages of script were redone and now are just devoted to him and his massive ego. It's amazing."

Crowe has been cast as both Robin Hood and the Sheriff of Nottingham in the picture, which will begin shooting in March.

spratt89

Tom Cruise has revealed that he was kicked out of son Connor's audition for Seven Pounds because he was too distracting.

Cruise had to wait outside to hear whether the 16-year-old got a part as the son of Will Smith's character.

"He went and auditioned, and Will and I were standing in the audition room, and the director said: 'Get out'," recalled Cruise.

"We were standing in the waiting room, like nervous parents, waiting to see if he got it or not. And he got it."

The Valkyrie actor added that he and Smith have a similar approach to rearing their children, saying: "I want Connor to earn [his career]. And that's how Will is with his kids."

spratt89

Clint Eastwood's Gran Torino has claimed the number one spot at the US box office.

The drama, which the 78-year-old directed and stars in, holds off competition from Kate Hudson/Anne Hathaway comedy Bride Wars and horror movie The Unborn to take first place.

With weekend takings of $29 million, Gran Torino smashes Eastwood's previous box office record of $18 million, set in 2000 for Space Cowboys.

Last week's number one Marley & Me falls to number four, while Bill Duke's drama Not Easily Broken is a new chart entry at number nine.

The US box office top ten in full:

1. (14) Gran Torino - $29,025,000
2. (-) Bride Wars - $21,500,000
3. (-) The Unborn - $21,095,000
4. (1) Marley & Me - $11,350,000
5. (3) The Curious Case Of Benjamin Button - $9,450,000
6. (2) Bedtime Stories - $8,550,000
7. (4) Valkyrie - $6,662,000
8. (5) Yes Man - $6,155,000
9. (-) Not Easily Broken - $5,600,000
10. (6) Seven Pounds - $3,900,000

spratt89

Jaime King has explained the reason behind the delay in making the highly-anticipated sequel to 2005's Sin City.

The actress, who starred as twin sisters Goldie and Wendy, suggested that creative differences between the studio and the filmmakers had postponed production.

"I think when Sin City came out it was such a big hit for the studio but the studio is frustrating…sometimes studios are awesome because they have a great vision for something, but then they want to do weird things with the second one," she told Collider.

"[Director] Robert [Rodriguez] didn’t want to go down that route, so we’ve just been waiting till somebody knocked some sense into them, where we can do it the way we want to do it.

"None of the filmmakers or the actors were willing to sacrifice doing it any other way other than what we wanted to do it. I’m hoping we’ll do it sometime this year, but you know how movies are."

Earlier this month, Frank Miller announced that he had finished writing the script for Sin City 2 but said that casting had not yet started.